Originally Posted by genec
Yeah, right... the speed limits were established well before any of that housing existed... and in the housing areas it is 45MPH, except near the school on Carmel Mountain Road, where the speed limit has actually been recently LOWERED to 40MPH. So "to support housing density..." Wrong Guess... try again.
Fine. The road is reasonably safe at the higher speeds. It's straight, there's very little cross traffic... what's the problem?
I find it very hard to believe you ascend that hill at 15MPH or even close to 20... but that is your claim so I let it lie.
I don't have a specific memory of checking the speed on that hill, but I know we go about 20 on El Camino Real up from Carmel Valley Road to Del Mar Heights, which seems like a similar grade, and it always amazes me.
Are there any claims for less crash severity at lower speeds... OK, simple test. Let me crash my bike into you at 5MPH and then again at 20MPH (the latter is still not even the speed delta you claim for your 20MPH climb with 50MPH traffic) and let's see if you notice any difference in the severity of the impact.
That's an answer to a question different from what I asked. Obviously, getting hit at higher speeds is worse than getting hit at lower speeds.
But at lower speeds drivers also might be less alert, and, so more likely to hit someone.
Personally, I prefer to let nature takes its course. People tend to drive at reasonable speeds given good designs, and this road seems to qualify.